Summary Calendar UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. Alonzo Lee Murphy, Jr

* Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined
that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent
except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR.
R. 47.5.4.
United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
April 22, 2003
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
No. 02-60502
Summary Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Plaintiff - Appellee
v.
ALONZO LEE MURPHY, JR
Defendant - Appellant
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Mississippi
USDC No. 3:01-CR-94-ALL-LS
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Before KING, Chief Judge, and SMITH and DENNIS, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Alonzo Lee Murphy, Jr., appeals his convictions for aiding
and abetting bank robbery and aiding and abetting brandishing a
firearm during a crime of violence. Murphy’s half-brother,
Prince John Johnson, and his friend, Duanne Kyle, robbed the
Westland Plaza branch of Trustmark National Bank in Jackson, Ms.
Murphy drove the getaway car in which the robbers left the scene.
Authorities followed a signal from a tracking device hidden in

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No. 02-60502
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the loot to a nearby house where they discovered Murphy, Johnson,
and Kyle counting the money.
Johnson pleaded guilty and testified against Murphy in an
effort to obtain a more lenient sentence. According to Johnson,
he and Murphy planned the robbery together, and Johnson obtained
the firearms used in the robbery at Murphy’s suggestion. Murphy
testified that he went to Westland Plaza to seek employment at a
grocery store, and that he gave Johnson and Kyle a ride to the
shopping center. When Murphy returned to his car after an
interview with the store manager and assistant manager, Kyle and
Johnson were missing. After a few minutes, Kyle and Johnson ran
out of the bank, wearing ski masks and carrying guns and money,
and they jumped into Murphy’s car. Kyle cocked his gun and
ordered Murphy to drive them away. Murphy testified that he did
not try to escape or contact the police because he was afraid of
Kyle. The assistant manager of the grocery store testified that
he did not see or talk to Murphy on the day of the robbery, and
that the manager was not at the store that day.
Murphy argues that the jury was not properly instructed and
that the evidence is insufficient to convict him because
Johnson’s self-serving testimony is inherently unbelievable.
Murphy has failed to show that the trial court plainly erred
by failing to give the jury a specific instruction that it must
find that Murphy knew that Johnson and Kyle possessed firearms
and that they intended to use the weapons during the robbery.

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No. 02-60502
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United States v. McClatchy, 249 F.3d 348, 357 (5th Cir.), cert.
denied, 534 U.S. 896 (2001). The trial court did not abuse its
discretion by denying Murphy’s request for a jury instruction on
the elements of the offense of accessory after the fact. United
States v. Willis, 559 F.2d 443, 444-45 (5th Cir. 1977); see also
United States v. Pennington, 20 F.3d 593, 600 (5th Cir. 1994).
Because Murphy did not renew his motion for judgment of acquittal
at the close of the evidence, we review his challenge to the
sufficiency of the evidence for plain error and find none. The
evidence supports Murphy’s conviction. See United States v.
Robles-Pantoja, 887 F.2d 1250, 1254-55 (5th Cir. 1989).
AFFIRMED.

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